Puerto Rico for first time allows same-sex couple to adopt

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — A Puerto Rico court has for the first time allowed a same-sex couple to adopt a child.

Wednesday's ruling involves a woman whose longtime partner gave birth to a girl through artificial insemination. The woman had been fighting to adopt the girl for two years.

Justice Secretary Cesar Miranda calls it a historic decision and says it represents a new civil rights achievement.

Puerto Rico until recently prohibited same-sex marriages and the recognition of such marriages. However, the government struck down those laws after a landmark U.S. Supreme Court decision in late June that required every state to recognize such marriages.

Gov. Alejandro Garcia Padilla previously signed orders that allow transgender and transsexual people to change their gender on their driver's licenses and protect their rights when seeking medical services.